260 NJ Inmates Released Early As COVID Program Resumes

NEW JERSEY — New Jersey has resumed the early release of some inmates, with 262 people released Thursday afternoon from prisons and halfway houses, officials say.

Liz Velez, director of communication for the New Jersey Department of Corrections, said the people released have less than one year left on their existing sentence. Inmates who have been convicted of certain crimes are not eligible for release.

With Governor Phil Murphy declaring and then re-declaring the state public health emergency, inmates can accrue credits toward release.

Under a law Murphy signed in 2020, eligible inmates and parolees can get four months of "credit" for every month they serve during a public health emergency such as the coronavirus pandemic. It will apply to adults and juveniles with less than a year of their sentences left. Anyone who is serving a sentence for murder or aggravated sexual assault, or who has been deemed a "repetitive, compulsive sex offender" is not eligible, lawmakers said.

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Republican Senator Joe Pennacchio (NJ-26) called for the public health emergency to end and the prisoner release to stop.

“The virus is running out of steam," Pennacchio said in a news release on his website. "There is hardly any risk to keeping these criminals behind bars where they belong. There is absolutely no need to let even one more prisoner out of jail early.”

Velez said the Department of Corrections is working with partners to make sure the people released have support, including access to housing, employment, and medical services.

"Balancing public health and public safety, individuals are COVID tested before release and provided a 'COVID Kit' with essentials such as sanitizer and masks, and the Department is managing transportation both private, public, and ambulatory for those with mobility issues," Velez said.

A spokesperson with the ACLU of New Jersey told Gothamist he expects 900 more people to be released in March.

The state released more than 5,300 inmates in 2020 and 2021, as Gothamist reports.